After a three-decade run on the iconic Vegas strip, the performers from the spectacle Jubilee! took a final synchronised kick in 2016. The production, renowned for its intricate costumes created by celebrated designer Bob Mackie, closed its doors due to declining audience numbers and disappointed reviewers who described it as a spectacle “a relic of another era”.
Today, nearly ten years later, showgirls, or at least the glamorous showgirl look, is back.
The King of Sparkle
Known as the “king of sparkle”, Mackie has made dramatic stage sparkle his signature style, outfitting everyone from screen legends to pop royalty. In a recent auction, a “naked” bodysuit he made for Cher in 1978 sold for $57,600, seven times its initial estimate, while a metallic tasseled bodysuit with shiny wings that Mackie designed for Tina Turner for a 1977 show sold for $19,200.
“In my view it looks more appealing for the new generation of stars who is seeking something other than what they grew up with”, he explained to a newspaper. “New stars are embracing a theatrical, more spectacular, attention-grabbing, entrance-making statement.”
A Pop Culture Comeback
It’s a look that glided all the way to the heart of popular culture in 2025 propelled by Taylor Swift. Earlier this year, the music phenomenon wore one of Mackie’s vintage Jubilee! costumes on the cover of her 12th studio album. The rhinestone encrusted bra and thong, ostrich-feather armbands and sparkly headpiece were perfect for a record named The Life of a Showgirl.
She isn't alone. This year, glamorous nods have been embraced by music artists including Dua Lipa as they danced across arena stages in sequins, revealing designs and ostrich feathers, highlighted against camp sets. A top stylist Lorenzo Posocco explained to a fashion magazine he wanted to bring “a showgirl spirit” to her Radical Optimism tour – drawing from pictures from the 1950s, her performers fluttered giant feathered fans.
Pulling from Tradition
Lipa, Carpenter and other hitmakers also take inspiration from historical performances, including classic theater and dance line references. The final look are worlds away from the late-century teen pop of revealing tops and cargo pants, and urban dance moves that were popular earlier.
But certain observers are enthusiastic with this showgirl renaissance. Nancy Hardy, a former Jubilee! showgirl who danced in the 2000s says the trend is “confusing”. She thinks the word showgirl is being “treated as an catch-all phrase encompassing everything from The Radio City Rockettes to Broadway performers and now even today's icons.”
A Coveted Retro Style
For younger and millennial stars, Mackie’s retro designs have become extremely desirable. In 2024, Zendaya gave a nod to one of Mackie’s earliest clients, Cher, when the star wore a see-through beaded dress made by the designer in 2001, which was similar to one he made for Cher to wear in 1967. Subsequently, a singer paid an significant price to buy the Mackie fringed mini dress she had worn previously to perform at the Grammys. In September, Carpenter wore a trio of classic Mackie designs at the MTV Video Music Awards. They are also a popular item among fashion collectors.
“Showgirls inspire a sense of longing for a historical elegance,” says Su Kim Chung, head of special collections at the University of Nevada, who studies the history of showgirls. “Now it is viewed as a sort of ‘acceptable’ appeal because it has been updated. It has got all the elegance, the rhinestones and the sparkle but without the nudity.”
A Than Just Style: An Icon of Vegas
Chung says showgirls are integral to the identity of Las Vegas. She points to former mayor Oscar Goodman who, during public appearances, was accompanied by two showgirls. While Las Vegas does not host any showgirl-based productions, Chung says they are still featured as an logo of the city, showing up at conventions and in promotional material. “The showgirl is still a lasting icon of Vegas spectacle,” Chung says.
An Appeal of Illusion
The former showgirl says the complete change of a stage character is part of the attraction. It’s something Taylor Swift references in a new docuseries that shows the backstage action from her extensive 2023 Eras tour, which included exhausting practice sessions, gym sessions and countless concerts across dozens of cities, each running for 3.5 hours.
The performer describes her own showgirl performances as “comparable to extreme physical exertion in stilettos every night”. Her headpiece was 34lbs. “I had to carry it all the way up the steps to the stage from the dressing rooms three floors below in the basement. I had to leave early for my cue so I could rest before I made my entrance. You’re perspiring the whole time but crafting this fantasy that it’s effortless and gorgeous and ethereal.”
Maybe this is where the true allure of the showgirl fantasy really is found. In the chaos of 2025 there is a desire for escapism. Who better to turn to than showgirls, who have always embodied dreams, idealism and a universe where nobody misses a mark.
